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Ricardel "will continue to support the president as she departs
the White House to transition to a new role within the
administration," White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said in a
statement. Sanders did not elaborate on what Ricardel's new job
would be.
Trump, after congressional elections last week in which his
Republican Party saw its power eroded, is also preparing to oust
Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen as part of a
post-election Cabinet shakeup, several U.S. officials said.
Ricardel is a former Commerce Department official hand-picked by
Trump's national security adviser, John Bolton, to serve as his
deputy.
She ran afoul of Melania Trump and her staff in negotiations
over the first lady's trip to Africa in October and the use of
government resources for the trip, a senior administration
official said.
Ricardel has also built a reputation in the White House for
berating staff, several sources said.
Melania Trump’s office took the extraordinary step of issuing a
statement on Tuesday saying that Ricardel should be ousted.
While first ladies historically have been known to pressure
their husbands over official business, they do not typically
issue statements about it.
“It is the position of the Office of the First Lady that she no
longer deserves the honor of serving in this White House,”
Stephanie Grisham, the first lady’s spokeswoman, had said.
Bolton had fought behind the scenes to keep Ricardel from being
forced out but ultimately lost the battle, two officials said.
(Reporting by Steve Holland and Roberta Rampton)
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